How to Avoid Scholarship Scams

A scholarship is defined as "a sum of money or other aid granted to a student, because of merit, need, etc., to pursue his or her studies."

Thankfully, unlike federal or private loans, you do NOT repay scholarship a wards or grants!

Fact: Scholarships usually have more than one requirement (e.g. GPA of 3.0 and above, an essay, etc.)!

Try looking through scholarships on Unigo, CollegeBoard, or FastWeb
Try looking for student-specific scholarships and grants on College Scholarships
Apply to as many as possible and keep track of what each required (e.g. High school transcripts, two-page essay, etc.)

Fact: You should never, ever, EVER pay for an application fee for a scholarship. Watch out for these other red flags:

The scholarship award requires a "disbursement" or "redemption" fee
The scholarship award is not issued by a bank or other recognized lender
The scholarship award is sent as a check you must reimburse for "taxes" or "shipping and handling"
An organization absolutely guarantees finding you a scholarship or your money back
An organization offers a "free seminar" that turns out to be more of a "fair" for financial aid consulting services, investment products, scholarship matching services, and overpriced student loans

You can never be too careful! If the call, email, or online offer seems suspicious, trust your gut instinct.

Don't respond to unsolicited offers, esp
Keep track of which scholarships you applied for and what they required (e.g. Essay, transcripts, etc.)
Ignore offers that have a "time limit" or "expiration date"
Check the organization's credentials (e.g. If it was founded just last year, don't trust it!)
Get written proof of the rules and restrictions before committing to any sort of application and/or recieving the scholarship award

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